This invention is in the field of plant molecular biology and relates to compositions and methods for modifying a plant""s traits, in particular plant disease tolerance or resistance.
Gene expression levels are controlled in part at the level of transcription, and transcription is affected by transcription factors. Transcription factors regulate gene expression throughout the life cycle of an organism and so are responsible for differential levels of gene expression at various developmental stages, in different tissue and cell types, and in response to different stimuli. Transcription factors may interact with other proteins or with specific sites on a target gene sequence to activate, suppress or otherwise regulate transcription. In addition, the transcription of the transcription factors themselves may be regulated.
Because transcription factors are key controlling elements for biological pathways, altering the expression levels of one or more transcription factors may change entire biological pathways in an organism. For example, manipulation of the levels of selected transcription factors may result in increased expression of economically useful proteins or metabolic chemicals in plants or to improve other agriculturally relevant characteristics. Conversely, blocked or reduced expression of a transcription factor may reduce biosynthesis of unwanted compounds or remove an undesirable trait. Therefore, manipulating transcription factor levels in a plant offers tremendous potential in agricultural biotechnology for modifying a plant""s traits.
The present invention provides transcription factors for use in modifying a plant""s disease tolerance or resistance.
In one aspect, the present invention relates to a transgenic plant comprising a recombinant polynucleotide. The recombinant polynucleotide comprises a nucleotide sequence encoding a polypeptide comprising at least 6 consecutive amino acids of a sequence selected from the group consisting of protein SEQ ID Nos. 2N, where N=1-56. And the presence of the recombinant polynucleotide alters the disease tolerance or resistance of the transgenic plant when compared with the same trait of another plant lacking the recombinant polynucleotide.
In one embodiment, the nucleotide sequence encodes a polypeptide comprising a conserved domain which may be 1) a localization domain, 2) an activation domain, 3) a repression domain, 4) an oligomerization domain or 5) a DNA binding domain. In a further embodiment, the nucleotide sequence further comprises a promoter operably linked to the nucleotide sequence. The promoter may be a constitutive or inducible or tissue-active.
In a second aspect, the present invention relates to a method for altering a plant""s deisease tolerance or resistance. The method comprises (a) transforming a plant with a recombinant polynucleotide comprising a nucleotide sequence encoding a polypeptide comprising at least 6 consecutive amino acids of a sequence selected from the group consisting of protein SEQ ID Nos. 2N, where N=1-56; (b) selecting transformed plants; and (c) identifying a transformed plant with roots having an altered trait.
In one embodiment, the nucleotide sequence encodes a polypeptide comprising a conserved domain which may be 1) a localization domain, 2) an activation domain, 3) a repression domain, 4) an oligomerization domain or 5) a DNA binding domain. In a further embodiment, the nucleotide sequence further comprises a promoter operably linked to the nucleotide sequence. The promoter may be a constitutive or inducible or tissue-active.
In a third aspect, the present invention relates to a method for altering the expression levels of at least one gene in a plant. The method comprises (a) transforming the plant with a recombinant polynucleotide comprising a nucleotide sequence encoding a polypeptide comprising at least 6 consecutive amino acids of a sequence selected from the group consisting of protein SEQ ID Nos. 2N, where N=1-56; and (b) selecting said transformed plant.
In one embodiment, the nucleotide sequence encodes a polypeptide comprising a conserved domain which may be 1) a localization domain, 2) an activation domain, 3) a repression domain, 4) an oligomerization domain or 5) a DNA binding domain. In a further embodiment, the nucleotide sequence further comprises a promoter operably linked to the nucleotide sequence. The promoter may be a constitutive or inducible or tissue-active.
In a fourth aspect, the present invention relates to another method for altering the disease tolerance of a plant. The method comprises (a) transforming the plant with a recombinant polynucleotide comprising a nucleotide sequence comprising at least 18 consecutive nucleotides of a sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID Nos. 2N-1, where N=1-56, and SEQ ID Nos. 113-121; and (b) selecting said transformed plant.
In yet another aspect, the present invention is yet another method for altering a plant""s trait. The method comprises (a) providing a database sequence; (b) comparing the database sequence with a polypeptide selected from SEQ ID Nos. 2N, where N=1-56; (c) selecting a database sequence that meets selected sequence criteria; and (d) transforming said database sequence in the plant. Alternatively, the database sequence can be compared with a polynucleotide selected from SEQ ID Nos. 2N-1, where N=1-56 or SEQ ID Nos. 113-121.
In a further aspect, the present invention is method for altering a plant""s trait, and the method entails (a) providing a test polynucleotide; (b) hybridizing the test polynucleotide with a polynucleotide selected from SEQ ID Nos. 2N-1, where N=1-56 or SEQ ID Nos. 113-121 at low stringency; and (c) transforming the hybridizing test polynucleotide in a plant to alter a trait of the plant.